Fireless cooker.



a citizen of Canton, int

,ARTHUR K. WHITMER, F CANTON, OHIO;v

FIRELESS COOKER.

Specication of vLetters Patent.

APatented Jan. '1., 191e.

yApplication filed September 30, 1910, Serial No. 584,689. Renewed August 8, 1912. Serial No. 714,138.

To all whom t may concern:

. Be it known that I, ARTHUR K. WHITMER, United States, residing at county of 4Stark and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Fireless Cookers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to heat insulating devices known as reless cookers, and hasv for its object to eii'ect an improvement in these devices whereby their operationy may be made more economical and more eiiicient.

To appreciate the` aim of the vinvention fully, it is necessary to consider that the object of all such devices is tov reduce to a minimum the expenditure of energy in the production of heat for cooking the food, and the attention needed. The first steps in this direction consisted in providing ren ceptaeles wherein the food, after being heated to a properdegree, could be insulated against the loss of the heat thus imparted,

and it would be cooked without the application of more heat. This was suiicient for the treatment vof some foods which were adapted to absorb' suiiicient heat to com# plete'their reduction to an edible state, but was not operative Ifor the preparation of foods having little watertherein, or having large air spaces in or therearound, fsuch as chicken, biscuits, etc., norwas it practicable where a roasting or browning effect was desired.- Therefore an important feature was shortly introduced, consisting in the introduction of heater elements consisting of bodies or plates of material-best suited for absorbing vand slowly radiating heat,

lwhich were disposed below and above the food .space in the cookers, and were removable to be heated and returned when food was to be cooked.

The present invention is an improvement in the last named development in the art.

It will be well appreciatedv by those versed in this` art that withy the cookers utilizing heater elements, when it is desired to prepare a food by the action of the heat contained therein, 4the presencefof ythe heater elements would defeat this purpose, by such rapid absorption of the heatthat the foodv would become quickly chilled. If the heaters are'removed there is afpossibility that the will be lost ormisplaced and it is und roble to separate them from theY cooker in this way. More ebjecaonable Sun, 'when they are removed a space isy left around the food receptacle, the air in which willitself absorb a largequantity of heat fromthe food, checking its cooking. If the heater elements are warmed to revent their absorption of heat from the ood, the prima objects of the tireless cooker are defeate as less heat energy mi htk be required to complete the cooking o the food' upon a 'stove than to heat it and the heater elements also.

It therefore a most important ob'ect of this invention to provide a cooker-w erein provision is madeA for veither cooking foodV by absorbed heat alone, or in conjunction with heater elements, without the necessity of separating the elements from the cooker.`

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from the following description, and

from the drawings, in which',

Figure l is a cross section of a tireless cooker equipped with this invention, using two heater elements, FigJQ is a vertical longitudinal section ofthe cooker with both heater elements inoperative, Fig. 3 is' a vertical cross section cfa modified cooker, Fig.

4 is a similar view'of a furthenmodiication of cooker and heater-insulator.

es l

Referring to the drawings, there is shown an insulated chamber member or tireless cooker 10, which may be formed 1n any i suitable manner, but as shown consists of the exterior casing 11 and the interior cesing 'l2 within Whichis'the chamber A., the

space between the casings being iilled with. suitable non-heat-conducting material 13.

The cooker-is open at one side, thebevelededge door 14 fitting snugly into conforming sides'l of the entrance, the door itself comprising a casing filled with insulating material .and being hinged atsthe lower edge of the cooker. There is provided one heater element 16 which may be of the usual ty and which is disposed upon the jfloor of t e chamber.

Supported u on suitable lauge4 guides 17- ixed to the si es of the chamber,

there is a heater-insulator 18, filled with l suitable insulating material, or having a vacuum as a mechanical equivalent, and

slidable upon the guides-17, being of proper `area and shape to fit snugly between the sides of the chamber and a ainst the' doorwhen closed. suitable pa g strip -20 is carried around the edges of the insulator to facilitate its snug engagement with the sides of the chamber Without binding, and to insulate it against conduction ot' heat to the chamber Walls When in use. A Wire netting or cage 21 is secured to the lower side of the insulator 18 spaced from the sides, and carried in this cage there is a heater elcment 22 of soapstone. This material may be replaced it' desired by aluminum or other suitable material, and it may be found desirable to use other means 'than the cage 21 for holding `such to the insulator, one method being illustrated in Fig. 4.

In use, if a roast is to be made, or food baked, either or-both heaters may be used. It both, the one 16 is disposed upon the Hoor of the chamber and the other, Q2, being suspended by the insulator in the upper part of the chamber, as shown in Fig. 1, the insulator being engaged upon the guides 17. It but one heater is required, the one 22 warmed, and t-hen disposed over the cold heater 16 in the bottom ot' -the chamber the insulator being disposed down 'ardly upon the cold heater to support the Warm one and prevent transference ol its heat to the cold element. Fig. 1. It it is desired to cookl food by the heat contained therein both heaters are disposed in the lower portion of the chamber, the one Q2 being superposed, -with the insulator uppermost, and the food receptacle may be placed thereover. Thus the t'ood is insulated from the cold heater elements and the full advantage obtained from its .'contained heat. See Fig. 2. operations the size ot1 the itood receiving space is maintained the same, so that no superfluous air is left to take up the heat otl the food.

The method of attaching the soapstone heater to the insulator insures it against damage and Wear, and its combination with the insulator facilitates its handling and also economizes heat While it being xvarmed upon a stove. A considerable amount of heat is ordinarily lost by radiatioirduring' the heating operation with the ordinary elements, and by this improved method thenvarming operation is consider ably shortened` It Will' of course be understood that each heater element employed may be provided with the insulator portion, this being a matter of i'nechanical` decision, which it is not deemed necessary to illustrate.

In Fig. 3 there is shown a modification ot the cooker in which a second set of supportint,r tlangelguides 1'7" is disposed beneath the upper setlfand as shown, when it is desired to dispose both heater elements in ino'ierative position, the heater-insulator is s'fonlv inverted and disposed upon the Illustrated in dotted outline inA In each of these` lower guides, and the heater 16 disposed rthereorer.

In Fig'. t a further modification is shown, in which the cooker opens at the top and is closed by means of a cover 14 similar in form to the door 14, but requiring nohinges, the construction ot' the remainder of the de` vice being the same as that first described. ln this torni ot' cooker the heaters are arranged to be lifted, by the provision of suitable recesses 24, in the heater portions, whereby a stove litter lnay be inserted for their removal or replacement when hot, and a ring 25 is carried by the insulator 1S for lifting thereot'.

that is claimed is:

1. In an appliance of the class described, the combination with an insulated chamber member ol a heater element movable therein, an insulator element attached to said heater element and adapted to insulate the heater element from a portion of the chamber.

2. 'In an appliance of"tne class described` the combination with an insulated chamber melnber ot a heater element removably disposed therein, an insulator element attached to said heater element and adapted to insulate the heater from a portion of the chamber, the heater and insulator elements being reversible in position with respect to the vertical to allow passage of heat from the heater element to an adjacent food receptaclc` at times, and to prevent access ot heat to the heater element from a food receptacle at other times.

3. A cooking appliance comprising an insulated chamber member, an insulator member removably disposed therein, a heater element carried on one side of said insulator member and adapted to be pre'- sonted toward a food receptacle in the chamber at times, the insulator member being reversible tor interposition between such food receptacle and the heater element at other times.

4, (A. cooking appliance comprising an insulated chamber device, Supports therein, an insulator member removably carried thereby, and a healer element carried on one side ot' the insulator member to be presented to-l ward food in the chamber at times, the insulator member being movable for interposition between the heater element and food in thechamber, for the purpose described.

5. Ar adjunct oitl tireless cookers of the class described comprising an insulator ele- Iment, a cage carried on one side thereof, and a heater element of soapstone or the like carried in the cage, for protection, and for the other purposes described. s

o. ln a device of the class described, the combina-.tion 'with an insulated chamber dcvice of a heater element, an insulator ele- .'ment movable in the chamber a heater ele- In testimony whereof I affix my signatureelng adapted to be dlsposed 1n Presence of two witnesses. w l

-' 1n opposed spaced relation at times, the in- .ARTHUR K. Q: sulator element being movable vto isolate one Witnesses: or both heater elements ''omfood.. in the chamber. y y1 g 

